Funeral Payments from the Social Fund

Applies to: England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland

Who does it help?

A Funeral Payment is to help with funeral costs that you are responsible for. You do not have to pay the money back. However, if the person who died left money to you in their estate, this might have to be used to pay back the Funeral Payment.

You will not be granted a Funeral Payment just because you are paying for a funeral. The benefits office has to agree that it is reasonable for you to be responsible for the funeral and that there is no one else who should be paying for it.

If you are claiming for the funeral of your child or partner, you can be paid a Funeral Payment as long as you meet the other qualifying conditions (see below). This applies to lesbian, gay and heterosexual partners. It also applies whether you were married, in a civil partnership or just living together.

If you are a close relative, family member or a friend of the person who has died, you may be able to get a funeral payment, but this will depend whether there are other relatives alive who are not on benefit. If there is someone closer or equally close to the person who has died who is not getting benefits, you cannot usually get a Funeral Payment. In this situation, the benefits office will also consider whether it is reasonable for you to accept responsibility for the funeral expenses. They will look at how well you knew the person who has died.

Is it means-tested?

You qualify for a Funeral Payment if you or your partner are getting any of the following benefits:

Income Support
income-related Employment and Support Allowance
income-based Jobseeker's Allowance
Pension Credit
Housing Benefit
Council Tax Benefit.

Some people who get Working Tax Credit or Child Tax Credit also qualify.

They also look at other money available to pay for the funeral. Your own savings are not counted but they will take into account money that the person who dies has left and insurance policies.

What help does the benefit provide?

If you have used a funeral director who has not yet been paid, the payment will usually be sent direct to them. If the funeral director has already been paid, the payment will be made to you.

How much does it pay?

There is no fixed sum for a Funeral Payment. It covers necessary burial or cremation fees, certain other expenses like the cost of a journey to arrange the funeral and up to £700 for other costs such as the funeral director's fees, the coffin or flowers. However, only up to £120 can be paid in total if the person who died had a pre-paid funeral plan.

If the person who died had a pre-paid funeral plan, you will only get help for items not already covered by the plan.

Is this a taxable benefit?

A Funeral Payment is not a taxable benefit.

How to claim

In England and Wales, the DWP Bereavement Service allows you to report a death to the DWP in a single phone call. This allows you to stop any DWP benefits the person who died was getting.

At the same time, the Bereavement Service can do a benefit check to find out if you can claim any benefits and take a claim for bereavement benefits or a funeral payment over the phone.

The contact details of the DWP Bereavement Service are:
Tel: 0845 606 0265
Textphone: 0845 606 0285
Tel: 0845 606 0275 (Welsh)
Textphone: 0845 606 0295 (Welsh).

If you want to make a claim for a Funeral Payment yourself, use claim form SF200. In England, Wales and Scotland, you can download form SF200 from the DWP website (PDF file size 301kb) (link opens in a new window).

In Northern Ireland, see the NI Direct website for an online claim form and other information about claiming (link opens in a new window).

You must claim within three months of the funeral. You can claim before the funeral actually takes place.

Documents you need

You need to send in all the bills or invoices for the funeral costs. You also have to give information about financial circumstances, for instance, whether the person who has died had a pre-paid funeral plan.